No matter what time of the year you go camping and hiking, you need to make sure you take along the right type of food and enough of it. However, when it comes to winter camping, it’s essential as you could find yourself stuck out in the wilderness with no access to fresh water and food because of snowdrifts and bad weather, etc.
When you’re cold, the body needs to use up a lot of calories when it attempts to warm you up again. It’s important that you eat hearty and healthy meals to make sure your body’s energy level is high enough to fight the cold temperatures.
Generally a good diet for winter camping should be made up of 50 per cent carbohydrates and simple sugars; 30 per cent fats; and 20 per cent proteins. You shouldn’t take any fresh foods like fruits, vegetables, and eggs with you as they are likely to freeze and can get pretty heavy when carrying them. The best choices are baked goods, freeze-dried, and dried foods. You can get the fat content from things such as butter, cheese, and meat.
Try to take enough water for your whole trip as it could be hard to find if lakes and streams are frozen over. The water can get heavy if it freezes, but you can thaw it out over your campfire. You shouldn’t eat snow as it takes a lot of energy for your body to melt it and it could lead to hypothermia. However, you can melt and filter the snow into liquid form for drinking.
